A lot of what we’ve been hearing the past year is that lending standards have become tough. That you have to have a good credit score to get a loan due to the subprime mortgage crisis. Yet now the failure of prime mortgages is going to make it even harder for first time homebuyers to get into a home. Lenders are now even scrutinizing prime borrowers, those who already have a good credit score. It is vital that your credit score be immaculate before you apply for a home loan. Lenders are being more and more conservative with their loans. If you’re looking to get into a home in the future, maybe it’s time to start the credit improvement process now. You can either do it yourself by learning how to write a reputable dispute letter which takes a lot of time and patience or you can hire a reputable firm for a monthly fixed price.

Read more about tightening lending standards here.

Eleven people were indicted in an ID theft ring that targeted stealing credit and debit card numbers from large stores. You’d be surprised by the list of stores; Barnes and Noble, TJ Maxx, Boston Market, Sports Authority, BJ’s Wholesale Club, DSW Shoe Warehouse, OfficeMax, and Forever 21.

Identity Theft can seriously harm your ability to buy a home, a car, or even something as trivial as a T.V.

What can you do when you are struck by ID theft? Check out this Identity Theft article.

Click to watch the Yahoo News hosted ABC News story.

One safety measure is by checking your credit report and/or employing a Credit Monitoring service.

It’s the question that anyone with credit problems will face - should I try to repair my credit myself or do I hire a company to do it for me? It’s a question that you’ll probably have to determine on your personal situation, goals, and financial situation. However, there are very convincing arguments as to why it will save you a lot of time, hassle, and money to go ahead and hire a company, preferably a law firm, that has experience in credit report repair. Here is a great article that helps provide valuable arguments to hire a credit repair law firm.

Recession may be the economic word of the year, but the actual numbers aren’t showing recession. The 2nd Quarter Gross Domestic Product numbers came out and the economy continued to grow, this time at a stronger pace than last quarter - 1.9 percent.

Although negative descriptions like “credit crunch” or “housing crisis” line the new stories, here is some positive feedback on the economy. Click here to read the story on MarketWatch, GPD accelerates to 1.9% pace in second quarter.

“The economy is in a perilous state, said Joel Prakken, chief economist for Macroeconomic Advisers, ahead of the report. The impact of the stimulus checks is positive but fading, he said, while businesses are cautious, and credit remains tight.”

Recession or not, it’s a great time to pull a free credit report to see what you can do to improve your ability to improve your credit in a “tight-credit” environment. Free Credit Reports - Trial Offer.

Did you know that a bad credit score can cost you a good job?

Most all Americans know that improving credit scores can lead to a
lower rate on home or auto loans, but did you know that having a bad
credit score can cost you that job you’ve been competing for? Now more
than ever, it’s important to keep your credit score high and free of
inaccurate items that can negatively impact your credit score. Many
employers are using your credit score as a screening tool to measure
your character and ability to manage finances. Whether this practice
is fair to the applicant is up for debate but many companies use some
sort of background check which may include a credit check. So before
you start applying for that highly competitive job, maybe it’s time
you clean up your credit reports first.

You can read more: How Bad Credit Can Affect Job Prospects

Also note that future employers are not the only ones who dig up that
report as a risk indicator. Insurance companies have been doing this
for quite some time. Read more: Insurance Companies Care About Credit